Valve



Nov. 2 5, 1941'. w. L. sTANfON 2,263,907

VALVE Filed bec. 15, 1938 ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 25, 1941 mirto erariale! 1 Claim.

This invention relates to valves and particularly to those of the hinged gate type.

In the art of hydraulic dredging it is customary to convey the dredged material to the shore by a pipe line supported by pontoons, which pipe line is there connected. to the land pipe which serves to distribute the dredged material over the area where the fill is to be made or the material is to be spilled. During the progress of the work it is sometimes necessary to shift the position of the land pipe or to add sections to it. 'Io accomplish that result without shutting down the pump on the dredge, it is the practice to insert a Y connection in the land pipe with branch pipes connected to each arm of the Y and to place a valve in each branch. Normally the valve will be open in the branch leading to the place where the material is to be deposited, and the valve in the other branch will be'closed. When it is necessary to add sections of pipe to the first mentioned branch or to change its location, the valve in the said other branch will then be opened so as to provide a path for the flow of material therethrough, and the valve in the said rst mentioned branch will then be closed. Upon the completion of the making of the changes, the sequence of operation of the valves will be reversed, that is to say, the valve in the first mentioned branch will then be opened and the valve in the said other branch will be closed.

Heretofore, it has been the practice to employ vertical gate valves in the branches of the said Y connection. Owing to the relatively high pressure prevailing it is diicult to open or close such gate valves, the operation sometimes requiring the labor of three or four workmen.

The present invention resides in a Valve of the hinged gate type having means to readily remove the gate from its seat and to swing the gate completely out of the path of flow ot material through the said valve, the said operations being accomplished with relative ease and, in the case of a large valve, such as a 24 inch valve, withthe labor of one workman. A

The Valve is further characterized by a construction that permits the ready replacement of those parts likely to be worn during the operationV of the valve; and is also characterized by having the parts so proportioned as tominimize the friction loss in the now of material through the valve and also to reduce the scouring effect of such ow, the manner of doing which will be hereinafter more fully described.

This invention will be understood from the following description, when read in connection with the attached drawing of which Figure 1 shows the valves inserted in the branches oi the Y connection, in the manner employed in dredging; Fig. 2 is atransverse cross-sectional view of the valve Where a-plane passesthrough the bearings in the side walls thereof; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional View of the valve; Fig. 4 shows, in isometric form, the type of gate used in the valve; Fig. 5 is a rotatable member, having a hole bored therein, eccentric to the' axis Yof the said member, for the reception of the pin,

shown in'Fig. 6; Fig. 6 is a side view of the pin I 2; Fig. 7 is a socket for thevlever shown in Fig. 8 for operating the gate of the valve; Fig. 8 is a side view of the lever l1; and Fig. 9 isa diagram-A matic Vview of -the levers I1 and I8 in dinerent positions. V

In Fig. 1 the discharge pipe I enters a'Y oonnection in each of the branches ofV which is one of the applicants valves 34 and 4, the direction of ow'through the said/branches being indicated by the arrows. The output side of each Valve is connected to a branch of the land pipe, such as 5 or 6, by which the dredged material maybe distributed over the area where the fill is to be made or the material is to be spilled. Each valve has a` casing such as'1 and a pair of levers, 8 and 9, by which the gate within the valve is operated. In Fig. 1, the-levers Band 9 vof valve 3 are shown extended toward the right in the direction inwhich the ow through the'valve would normally occur. Such position of the levers forces the' gate against the seat at the output side of the valve and prevents such flow. In thecase of the valve 4 in the lower branch of `the Y, in which the levers are thrown to the left, the gate has been completely'removed from the path of iiowso as to permit the free passage of fluid therethrough, as indicated by the arrows y The manner by which that is accomplished will .be apparent from considering Figs. 2 and 3 which show in greater detail the structure of the valve. Referring to Fig. 2, which is a transverse crosssectional view through the valve, the casing 'I has therein, at each side, a bearing I0, whichextends ,through the casing. This bearing is supported by welding it to the casing which also seals the joint between the bearing and the casing. Considering, for example, the structure at the Vrighthand side of the figure, the bearing i0 is so proportioned yas to receive the member Il which is shown in Fig. 5. The left-hand portion of that member, as it appears in that ligure. has the proper diameter to iit withinthe bearing I0 of Fig. 2, and. the-diameter and length 'of that lefthand portion is such as to bring the shoulder of the member II up against the outer surface of the bearing as indicated by a in Fig. 2. The member I I has a hole b bored therein, as indicated in Fig. 5, which is eccentric with respect to the axis of the said member, the degree of eccentricity being indicated by the distance c betvveen the axes of the hole and of the member I Through the hole b in the member I I is inserted the pin I2, the diameter of which is such as to permit the pin to rotate within the member II during the operation of the valve, as will be clearly described hereinafter. The pin I2, which is separately shown in Fig. 6 has a non-circular shoulder adjacent to its head, as shown at the lefthand side of that figure, and likewise has another non-circular portion at the right-hand end adjacent to the threads. As shown in Fig. 2, the

pin is inserted in the bore in the member II in such fashion that the head of the pin is within the casing, and the' threaded portion .of the pin outside the casing.

The pin when being inserted in the bore of the member I I, is passed vthrough the non-circular opening in an arm I3 of the gate I4 of the valve which is shown in Fig. V4. The gate I4 is in the formVV of a segment of a sphere, the arms being attached to the inner surface thereof by welding or'other suitable methods. Near the rear end of eacharm'is the non-circular opening mentioned above of such size and shape as to fit snugly over the shoulder oflthe pin I2 so that the arms will be rotated by the pin and through the same angular distance.

Over the outer `end of each pin, that is over the non-circular portion adjacent to the threads, is placed a gate lever socket I5, fa cross section of which is shown in section Fig. 42 and a side view in'Figs'. 3 and '7. Referring to the latter figure it will be seen that the lower part of this device has in it a non-circular opening through which passes the non-circular part of the pin, viz., that part adjacent to the threads, the parts being so proportioned to provide a snug t. The upper end of the member I5 has therein a socket I6 into which fits one of the arms of the lever I'I shown in Fig. 8. Y A similar leverI8 of slightly difyferent proportions is intended to be tted into the socket of the eccentric member Il at each 'side of the valve. A washer I9 is placed over the pin and a nut 20 is then drawn up tightly. The structure at the left-hand side of Fig. 2 is similar to that just described, excepting that the parts are reversed in position.

The valve casing has therein a handhole 2| through which access may be had to the interior of the valve and through which mud or other foreign material may be removed. The casing is provided with suitable flanges by which the entrance nipple 23 and the discharge nipple 22 may be bolted to the casing, the entrance nipple projecting within the casing and the discharge nipple projecting therefrom as shown in Figs. 2 and `3; the-sections of land pipe may be connected f..

to the entrance and discharge nipples by forcing the tapered end of such pipe into or over the said nipples'.

YThermanner in which the valve operates is as follows; Let it be assumed that the gate I4 is f closed, as shown in Fig. 3. Under that condition, thegate presses against its seat which is the inner edge ofthe discharge nipple 22 and the gate lever I'I and the eccentric lever I8 will be in the position C and A, respectively, shown in Fig. 9.

To open the valve it is essential to pull the gate I4 off its seat and then move it to the upper part of the casing. To accomplish that result first the eccentric lever I8 is moved in a counter-clockwise direction from the position A, shown in Fig. 9, to the position B. This rotates the member II through which passes the pin I2 which is eccentric to the member II. The pin, whose position at various times is represented by the small circles of Fig. 9 moves along a curve around the axis of the valve body in the manner shown in that figure, moving from the point to the point y when the lever I8 is moved from position A to position B. In moving backward from point :u to point y, the pin pulls the gate I4 backward through the distance between and y which affords ample clearance between the gate and the inner edge of the nipple 22 to enable the gate to be swung into its position in the upper part of the casing.

That step is accomplished by moving the gate lever I'I also in counter-clockwise direction. It will be remembered that the gate lever sockets I5 are xedly connected to the pins to which also are fixedly connected the arms I3 of the gate. Consequently, the gate will be rotated'bj1 the movement of the gate lever and when the lever is in the position D, Fig. 9, the gate will be in the position at the top of the casing as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 3.

In order to close the gate the method is reversed. The gate lever I1 will be moved clockwise to the position E. 'I'hen the eccentric lever I8 will be moved clockwise from position B as far as it will go, represented by A of Fig. 9. The gate lever will then assume the position marked C. The gate I4 will then be `pressed firmly against the edge of the nipple 22 and the flow through Vthe valve will stop.

A valve of the type hereinbefore described is extremely economical in operation and maintenance. It may be opened or closed by a single workman whereas a valve of the same size but of the type heretofore employed in dredging operations requires the services of three or four workmen to operate it.

It is desirable to point out several features of importance shown on the drawing but not heretofore mentioned.

In order to increase the tightness of the joints between the several bearing surfaces and the rotating members, rawhide washers have been provided, as indicated by m, n, o and p upon Fig. 2. Those washers not only minimize the leakage of water through the joints but also serve the purpose of keeping between the bearing surfaces the lubricating grease that may be forced between such surfaces through the ducts to which the alemite ttings 24 and 25 shown in Figs. 2. 3 and 5'a1re attached.

Another feature of importance is the tapering ,ofV the input nipple 23 so that its diameter at its right-hand end will be substantially smaller than the diameter of the left-hand end of the voutput nipple 22, adjacent thereto. The result of such proportioriing of the nipples is that the jet of fluid issuing from the input nipple 23 does not strike the edge of the output nipple 22. This not only reduces the abrasive effect upon the nipple 22 but also reduces the friction loss where the rstream of fluid passes through the gate opening.

Various modifications may be adopted in place of those hereinbefore described. Thus while the gate has been shown in Fig. 4 as having spherical portions without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

In a, valve, the combination with a substantially cylindrical casing having a handhole therein of an input nipple eccentrically positioned therein, the diameter of the said casing being substantially greater than that of the said nipple to provide space for the operating mechanism of the said valve, an output nipple of slightly larger diameter than the input nipple also attached to the said casing, a cylindrical bearing xed in each side of the said casing, a rotatableV member positioned in each bearing, said member having a hole extending therethrough parallel to and eccentric to the axis of the member, a rotatable pin for each of said holes, a gate having two arms each rigidly fastened to the inner end of one of the pins, a lever attached to each rotatable member, a second lever attached to each rotatable pin, the said bearings and the said rotatable members having means to supply lubricant to the adjacent moveable surfaces, and means at each end of the said surfaces to prevent the Wastage of the said lubricant from those surfaces.

WALTER LAMAR STANTON. 

